Organizing a forestry seminar for the Boreal forest program

Location: Irkutsk region, Lake Baikal, approx. 25 people. Russia – China

Our scope of work:

• • coordinating communication with the project members from different countries
  • group booking for flights with “Siberia”-airlines from Beijing to Ulan-Ude
  • bus rental for 3 days
  • meals and catering (lunches, dinners)
  • arranging accommodation in “Grand Baikal” and “Burduguz” hotels
  • conference room reservation for the official part of the seminar
  • reservation of the retro train car for a trip on Circum-Baikal Railway; arranging a professional guide for the whole route and lunch on one of the stations
  • arranging the crossing of the Lake Baikal
  • organizing a guided tour to the “Taltsy” museum of heritage and architecture; arranging a workshop in making a birchbark musical instrument

  The story

  Planning the trip to Baikal started long before the dates we even confirmed. We were very busy with our research looking for suppliers and networking until our clients, sustainable forest management experts, approved the dates of their impressive field session in the forests of Irkutsk region. The scale of the event was impressive not even because of the number of the participants (a compact group of 25 people) but because of its global representation: a significant part of the participants came from China, where the first part of their trip took place, the other participants arrived from Laos, South Africa, Australia, Great Britain and, of course, Russia.

  Our task was to plan a well-balanced program that would include both business meetings and walking along the famous nature routes, which allows showing the significance and the beauty of our nature to the foreign guests. Being used to Scandinavian forward-thinking approach we booked the facilities that are normally in high demand in August way in advance, already in March.

  The main highlight of our route was a trip in a retro steam train on the Circum-Baikal Railway along the shore of the Lake Baikal.
  We booked a whole train carriage for our group and arranged a professional guide and catering for the trip. The group even managed to hold a meeting on the way, but we are sure that the fantastic views from the train windows kept distracting them.

  The group travelled through several places, so for organizing the catering at distant locations in the forests we did a thorough check of the catering companies – the dishware had to be disposable, but with minimal damage to the environment. The breakfasts and dinners, as well as the accommodation, were provided by the hotels “Grand Baikal” and “Park hotel Burduguz”, located in beautiful recreational areas, where the first thing you see in the morning from your window is the Sobolinaya Mountain or a panoramic view of the Angara-river.

  Traditionally, field seminars need to be as efficient and diverse as possible, that’s why we included a visit to “Taltsy” – museum of heritage and architecture – near Irkutsk. It’s a unique museum complex with a lot of craft ateliers, where you can not only look at the works of the craftspeople but also try it yourself. Our clients chose a workshop on making a birchbark pipe.

  Such route with additional activities is perfect for a corporate trip – Baikal is amazing at any time of year!